September, 1972
BLACK INK
Page?
Welcome, Black freshmen
by Mary Lacewell
Minister of Information
These past several weeks at
Carolina have been rather
eventful ones for you. Most of
you have gotten your first taste
of 24-hour freedom, UNC
football cheers, white
roommates, BSM meetings and
8:00 classes. You are now
probably wondering how you
are going to make it throu^ the
semester with these five
ingredients as stimuU. Well, take
it from one who has tried, it
ain’t easy. But, somehow if you
really try, you can make it.
Have you ever heard that if
you make it through your
freshman year in college you
won’t have trouble making it
through your senior year?
Basically I think this is true,
especially if you are going to a
predominantly white university.
This is the case because, besides
the heavy academic load
traditional to most freshmen and
the novelty of the unlimited
freedom, you have the added
problem of trying to maintain
your Blackness while being
completely surrounded by
whiteness.
The identity crisis is a
common disease suffered by
many Blacks in predominantly
white institutions. That is, many
Blacks come to white
institutions like Carolina and
forget their Blackness. They
become so engrossed in white
oriented happenings that they
don’t even think about or
perhaps don’t want to get
involved in Black oriented
happenings on and off-campus. I
would even go so far as to say
that eventually these people
think themselves to be superior
to other Blacks. The less said
about these pseudo Blacks the
better. I just hope all of you
have come to UNC with the firm
conviction that you are first and
foremost Black. You must know
what you are
you are bound
or
to
who and
otherwise
suffer.
I urge. Black Freshmen, to
get involved in the black
happenings on campus. The
Black Student ^Movement is the
primary link to black happenings
on- and off-campus. Perhaps you
have already heard the yearly
rumor made to you by some
disenchanted Black that the
BSM is a bullshit organization.
This, I assure yo’j, is not the
case. The BSM is an accredited
student organization funded by
the student legislature. There is a
yearly check on each
organization and if it is not
functioning properly, the
organization will lose it funds.
The student legislature
recognized the efforts of the
BSM to provide for Black
students last year and increased
the BSM budget substantially for
this year.
As was the case last year, the
BSM tries to offer you
something in just about any
area, academic, social, cultural,
and political. Academically, the
BSM provides tutorial programs
to help explain and supplement
your class assignments. There are
two tutctfial programs working
under the auspices of the BSM,
the Gilson Tutorial program ^nd
BSM-Y tutorial program.
Socially, the BSM will sponsor a
party every home game weekend
and the social committee is in
the process of arranging plans
for some socially oriented
happening every weekend.
Culturally, the BSM is
sponsoring several major events
this year, the Miss BSM pageant
and a cultural fair. Herman
Mixon’s dance group, the Opeyo
Dancers, will perform several
times this year and the BSM
choir wiU offer a number of
concerts this year. Politically,
the BSM will be involved in
voter registration drives on and
off-campus.
This, I assure you, is only
part of what the BSM has
planned for you this year. There
is only one qualification,
however. In order for any of
these programs to be successful
we need your assistance starting
right now. Go to the BSM office
and sign up in the different
committees today. Please don’t
put it off. You can’t expect to
gain anything without first
venturing to help.
After reading this article
some of you may get the idea
that I’m a Black racist. This is
not true. I simply feel that if
; ou are Blacky your main
interests should be centered
around Blackness. You must
have a natural desire to want to
participate in Black happenings.
No one should have to
practically beg you to
participate. If you are one of
those people who needs to be
begged to attend BSM meetings,
begged to attend cultural events,
begged to pay your $3 semester
dues, I advise you to sit down
for a minute and start
questioning your values.
I strongly feel that if you
don’t get involved into some
Black oriented programs on
campus, you ;ire missing a great
opportunity in meeting other
interesting Black students. 1 urge
your involvement because you
may become one of those Black
students who is always in the
company of white students. It’s
not so much the fact that they
are always with white students as
it is their non-reaction when you
and your group walkipast these
pseudo-Black studentp. I urge
upon you again to tk’y not to
become one of these
pseudo-Blacks. Try to get
involved. However, if; you are
on; of those Blacks who cannot
become involved in committees
for perfectly logical reasons,
please try and maintain your
Blackness on this predominantly
white campus. That’s all we ask.
New lounge policy enacted
by Charles Duncan
Staff Writer
Much has been said about the
parties held in James by the
Black students and the
numerous occurances of
violence. This year the
University has done away with
the guards that were used last
semester to curtail the violence
and replaced them with an
interim policy. The specifics of
this policy that are relevant to
the Black students are:
1. Parties can no longer be
held in the floor lounges unless
it is a party held by and for the
residents of that particular floor.
2. A group or person(s) must
sign wkh the Residence Director
for the use of the first floor
lounge at. least 48 hours before
the party is to be held and not
more than one week in advance.
3. A group or person(s)
signing fm the use of the lounge
must assume financial
responsibility for retumii^ the
lounge to the condition in which
it was prior to the function and
for any damage that occurs.
4. Any violation of these
regulations will result in the
termination of that individual's
or group’s privilege to have any
function in university owned
residence halls for the duration
of the semester.
One effect of this policy on
Black social functions in James
is that there will be no Black
floor parties in the respective
floor lounges because, under this
new policy, only residents of a
particular floor can have a party.
There are no all Black floors, so
any floor party will be mixed.
For those who are dissatisfied
with this policy, steps arc being
taken towards the formulation
of a new policy by a committee
of Robert Kepner, Director of
Residence Life, Fred Schoeder,
Assistant Dean of Student Life,
Richard Epps, Student Body
President, Steve Saimders,
Chairman of the Residence
College Federation, John
Meeker, Assistant Dean of
Residence Life, and Elliot
Stephenson, Assistant Dean of
Minority Affairs.
Elliot Stephenson explained
that the interim policy is being
watched closely in hopes that it
will help to determine what the
new policy will be like. Elliot
said that he was pleased with the
way this policy was working out.
If it continues to do so, then
many of the provisions of the
interim policy will he adapted
jnto the permanent policy. No
definite date has been given as to
when the committee will devise
a permanent policy, but he feels
that before second semester
something permanent will be in
effect. Once a new policy is
devised by this committee, it
will go before both the student
government and the Residence
College Federation for final
approval.
This new policy has several
good aspects about it. The
lounge will be open to anyone
who goes through the proper
procedures. But the policy does
nothing to curtail the violence
that the administration and staff
were so concerned about last
semester. That situation could
easily repeat itself under the new
policy. The university seems to
think that it can stop the
violence, but the solution must
come from us.
Injured Oglesby sidelined.
Black athletes
manipulated
by Robert Evans
Staff Writer
As fair minded as 1 try to be,
I no longer feel the need to ask
myself why many of our top
Black athletes choose to leave
the South to pursue their
careers. In an amazingly
inconsistent Tiove, Bill Dooley
provided me with the answer.
Imagine yourself a
quarterback in high school, who
has attained All-American status.
Add to that a desire to play
collegiately in your own state, a
sensational year as a freshman at
the school you chose (in the
South, of course), and you are in
the exact situation as Cl. r' :r
Bagget, that is, until last \ . -k.
It is not however, the pui.
of this article to discuss '
Bagget incident (though we aii
sympathize with him), but
rather to discuss the politicf
manipulation of Black athletes
that ha!f pervaded this country
and in particular the South. It is
fairly obvious that there is still a
quota system in this neck ;>f the
woods which up to this point,
has manifested itself particularly
in the ACC’s 800 rule. The 800
rule was deleted this year.) Of
course the standard rep y to this
was that ACC schools were
interested in seeing their athletes
graduate, and that anything less
than 800 on *he SAT casted
doubt on a player’s ability to
perform academically. In answer
to this, I can only point to the
sizable number of football and
basketball seniors that 1 have
noticed struggling through
summer school after playing
their last game for good ole
Carolina. It would appear that
there is a credibility gap between
the lofty principles set forth in
ACC rules, and what actually
takes place.
This one rule itself (not
including the obvious quota
system; two Black freshmen
basketball players every two
years), has a profound effect on
the number of Black athl>5tes
that are available to this school
and others like it. Moreover, the
ironi: thing about it is the heart
felt need of prideful Southerners
to be winners. To illustrate this
ambiguous statement I merely
refer the reader to Monroe Bley,
Reggie Royal an’ Otis Cole
(remember Florida State?),
Henry Bibby and God knows
how many others, who have
helped to spoil some of
Carolina’s greatest moments;
yet, aM of thcs'' men could have
' r. N’-.nh i’^arcl'na” across
tiie;' cric‘;‘s.
O'hot reasons f' - this
phcp* 1! -lion are many ind
c:5r ijiex. However, ai Ute risK of
sticKir.£, my Soot in my mouth, I
v/ill say tiiat it appears to me
that the whites who control
athletics here, feel the need to
reassure themselves that the
Black athlete is not physically
superior. That he is, is a
ridiculous notion, but then the
South is notoriously known for
such notions. Nevertheless, I
believe that there is going to be a
larger proportion of Blacks
excelling in sports for a long
time to come, simply because of
differences in physical
environment.
I will con.lude by answering
a question posed several months
ago by Larry Brown, coach of
the Carolina Cougars. In
response to Tom McMillen’s not
making the Olympic squad after
the last cut, he wanted to know
why we weren’t at the stage in
which an athlete was chosen by
ability, and not some makeshift
quota system. The ans-.ver is that
politics, rules and quotas are the
last sure ways to keep it light.
I am Black!
And I am beautiful!
My soul is deep and rich
like Bbck soil
And
Black muddy rivers!
And I am bad!
Yes, I am bad!
The Blackest Day
I am proud, t fight. I struggle. I bleed. And finally I die!
But when I die - How glorious!
For there are no wasted breaths of time in the existence of me!
I am terrifying!
Yes! I am terrifying!
When white men see me coming, they know that I will rise!
Because I am out to get you. World! To rearrange your
values.
And when I’m through with you. World.
How different you will be.
You'll want it all Black!